Vladimir
Banned
At the beginning of World War II, the Royal Navy and British merchant fleet were still the largest in the world. The United States Navy had restarted battleship production in 1937, but the Royal Navy was still a bit bigger. However, once the United States had been mobilized into the war, its industrial capacity created such an enormous fleet that by 1943, it was larger than the combined fleets of all other combatant nations. Along with its substantial fleet of cruisers, destroyers, corvettes and submarines, it had 15 battleships and battlecruisers and 7 aircraft carriers. However, even after the war, the British still had the world's largest merchant fleet.
However, what if the war hadn't happened? The United States was already building battleships, but with the depression probably still ongoing (at least to some degree), the effort to build up the US Navy wouldn't have been as big, especially as it would not have faced the very real threat of defeat in the Pacific. Britain was also affected by the depression, and both sides were limited by the Washington Naval Treaty, but the Royal Navy still had a head start.
Ultimately, I believe that with a concerted effort, the US could easily have overtaken Britain as the dominant force on the world's seas, as it is simply more economically powerful. I guess it all depends on how the depression plays out and on politicians judging whether the US really needs to overtake the British. I would bet that the US would jump at the first opportunity. Throughout the 19th century, the United States was terrified that the British, using their overwhelming control of the North Atlantic, would shut off its access to the sea and strangle it. Its obsession with foreign naval power was probably the real cause of the Spanish-American War (to drive the Spanish Navy away from the Carribbean) and WWIIs "Destroyers for Bases Agreement" (where the British got old US destroyers for British bases in the Western Hemisphere). The US would not pass up an opportunity to overtake Britannia and rule the waves, though whether the Depression would allow that is another story.
However, what if the war hadn't happened? The United States was already building battleships, but with the depression probably still ongoing (at least to some degree), the effort to build up the US Navy wouldn't have been as big, especially as it would not have faced the very real threat of defeat in the Pacific. Britain was also affected by the depression, and both sides were limited by the Washington Naval Treaty, but the Royal Navy still had a head start.
Ultimately, I believe that with a concerted effort, the US could easily have overtaken Britain as the dominant force on the world's seas, as it is simply more economically powerful. I guess it all depends on how the depression plays out and on politicians judging whether the US really needs to overtake the British. I would bet that the US would jump at the first opportunity. Throughout the 19th century, the United States was terrified that the British, using their overwhelming control of the North Atlantic, would shut off its access to the sea and strangle it. Its obsession with foreign naval power was probably the real cause of the Spanish-American War (to drive the Spanish Navy away from the Carribbean) and WWIIs "Destroyers for Bases Agreement" (where the British got old US destroyers for British bases in the Western Hemisphere). The US would not pass up an opportunity to overtake Britannia and rule the waves, though whether the Depression would allow that is another story.